Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1887-08-17
THE PUBLIC EXECUTIONER.

month has been largely in excess.
THE PUBLIC E~XECUTIONER.
Jerry Pagetes, the murderer of Samuel
Kohn, for which he was under sentence to
be hanged at st. Louis last Friday, COM
mitted suicide in his cell on Wednesday
night by cutting the artery of his left arm
above the elbow.
Fred Hopt, alias Welcome, was shot to
death in the yard of the penitentiary four
miles from Salt Lake City last Thursday.
The firing party consisted of five men with
rifles. DR.. Hamilton pinned a rosette over
Hopt's heart, told him to be firm and
look straight at the guns, and death would
come quickly; he would not be mutilated
ifhe did not finch. The condemned man
showed the utmost frmness. This case is
remarkable for two reasons. The murder
for which Hopt was executed was one Of
almost unexampled atrocity and boldness,
and was proven on the first trial beyond
the possibility of a doubt. The man had
been a hardened criminal previous to this
murder, was fresh from Jail, and was not a
man of means, yet his lawyers appealed
to the United States Supreme Court four
times on technicalities relating to court
proceedings or construction of law. Three
times a new trial was ordered, but the
fourth time the appeal was dismissed:
These proceedings have cost the United
States Government many thousands of
dollars.
Sol. Conyers, colored, was hanged in the
jail at Hampton, in this State, last Friday
at 11.45 A. NJ. for the murder of Jordan
Robinson, colored. The condemned MAJ
was somewhat agitated when taken from
his cell, and in the midst of his harangue
tears ran down his cheeks. He was ready
to go, he said, having made his peace with
God. He warned all men against guns
and pistols, and acknowledged that he
had Waylaid his victim and shot him
down in cold blood. He said his SEN
tence was just, and that Gussie Brooks,
a colored woman, had caused two men to
lose their lives. He regained his compos-
ure as he mounted the trap, and did not
finch or culver as the paraphernalia OF
death was arranged about him. At the
stroke of the Ratchet his body shot straight
down. His struggles were almost imper-
ceptible. His neck was broken and he
died almost instantly. A small crowd was
in town. Conyers and Robinson were tur-
p~entine %laborers, working at a distillery
near Matthew's Bluff, on the Savannah
River, in Hampton. The murderer could
give no excuse for the committal Of the
crime other than that Robinson had an old
grudge against him and had threatened to
take his life. Acting upon this belief, Con-
yers procured a gun, waited for Robinson
on the public road, and when he made
his appearance shot him. AT the trial
Conyers was placed upon the stand, and
was practically convicted by his W tes-
timony. He exhibited marked ipdifer-
ence throughout the trial, and while he
was leaving the court house after sentence
he coolly asked the sheriff: won't dey
let any one see de hanging?" The muir
derer was about 80 years old.
Frank Wilson was hanged at Prescott,
Arizona, on Friday for the murder of
Samuel Clevenger and his wife, Charlotte,
in Nav, 1887, on the Buckskin Mountains.
Wilson and his companion, John A. john
son, colored, were employed by Clevenger
to assist in driving a number of horses to
Washington Territory. No one was in
the party except the two men, Clevenger,
his wife and adopted daughter, and while
camping at the place mentioned, Wilson
murdered Clevenger and his wife with an
axe. Wilson and Johnson then divided
the stock and five hundred dollars which
Clevenger had with him and buried the
bodies, which were found six months later.
Wilson and the girl lived together after
wards and went to Washington Territory
and Idaho, where they were found by the
sheriff, and the former was taken back to
Prescott for trial. johnson was found in
Nevada, and the chain of circumstantial
evidence, together with the girls state
ment, served to convict both. Wilson,
however, made a confession e%xonerating
Johnson and stating that the latter did not
know of the murder till some time after
ward. Johnson was respited by the Gov
ernor until the 23rd OF September.
A u. S.. SENATOR IMPRISONED FOR
CoNTEMPT.-On Friday last United States
Senator Riddleberger was sentenced by
Judge Newman, presiding at the County
Court at Woodstock, Va, to pay a fine of
twenty-five dollars and be imprisoned for
five days for contempt of Court. Riddle
berger was placed in Jail, but on Friday
night was released by a mob, the jailor
making but slight resistance. The cir
cumstances leading up to the arrest OF
Riddleberger are related as follows:
On Thursday, w. w. Jones was tried for
larceny and the jury found that he was
insane. Jones was a client OF Riddle
berger's, and the verdict made the Sena-
tor angry. He was accused of writing a
placard and giving a boy two dollars to
haul Jones up and down the town, dis
playing a placard meanwhile which the
latter had written on it "Verdict, Bill
Jones not guilty, but insane, jury insane,
lawyers insane, Court insane, in the
main." The noise occasioned by this dis
play disturbed the proceedings of the
Court, and the CONFERENCE.-The attorney,
J. G. Baker, had the Judge issue an order
for the arrest of Riddleberger, to appear
before Judge Newman and show cause
why he (Riddleberer) should not be fined
and imprisoned for ridiculing the Judge
and disturbing the Court.
At 5 o'clock Riddleberger appeared be-
fore the Court and defended himself. He
said that Judge Newman had no jurisdic-
ton in the case, which the Judge denied,
and asked Senator Riddleberger to sit
down until the evidence could be taken to
prove that he (the %senator) was the n
who i~nstigated the ridicule and then, he
said, the Court would hear argument.
Riddleberger would not sit. down, and the
Court fined him S25. He then detied the
Court, and said: "This Court shall not send
me to jail for five days. Senator Riddle
berger said he would like to see the man
who could take him to Jail, and Sheriff
Whitman at once arrested the Senator ana
locked him up. This action caused much
excitement, and On Friday night a mob OF
one hundred men, supposed to be from
Edinburg, in Summers county, scaled the
walls of the Jail yard and took the Senator
out on ladders.
On Monday morning Riddleberger vol
UNFAIRLY returned to the Jail, having de-
cided to serve out the sentence imposed by
the Court.
THE NEW RAILRoAD.-Maj. Wilson
has not yet finished the survey on the
Cumberland Gap road, but is expected to
reach Morganton in ten days. It is prob
able the survey will begin at Shelby in